Thursday, August 06, 2015

Japan building world’s largest floating wind turbine

Japan, still recovering from the after-effects of the 2011 accident at the Fukushima nuclear power plant, has started building offshore wind turbines as an alternative source of energy.The country is constructing an offshore network that consists of wind turbines, expected to be ready in a couple of years. The turbine stands at 104 meters and features three 80 meter turbines. The floating wind turbine is planned to be able to stand giant waves, even tsunamis.

This is only one of the three turbines project sponsored by the Japanese government. When the construction is complete, the turbines will be connected to a floating sub-power station, with the end goal of creating the world's first floating wind farm.

Additionally, the structure is located about 32 kilometers far from the coast of Fukushima, an area hit by a powerful earthquake and tsunami that caused a catastrophic meltdown at the Fukushima Daiichi nuclear plant in 2011.

When the turbine is fully operational, it will have 7 megawatts of installed capacity.

Katsunobu Shimizu, one of the chief engineers, told U.S. network NBC News that the turbine and anchors are designed to withstand 20 meters high waves.

After the earthquake that caused the Fukushima disaster in 2011, some nuclear stations in Japan were closed. In a bid to meet growing electricity demand in the country in the wake of the disaster, Japan turned to liquefied natural gas, and it use has reached record levels.www.aa.com.tr6/8/15---Related:

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